Gui Duvignau is a French-Brazilian bass player and composer whose multi-cultural background has led to a life of traveling and musical exploration. A jazz musician in essence, he is interested in creative music in all its forms and draws inspiration from his experiences performing Rock, Brazilian, and ‘World’ music, as well as his studies in contemporary concert music.
His first album Porto, in collaboration with singer Sofia Ribeiro was inspired by his time living in Portugal. The album was released in 2010 with the support of Portuguese radio station, Antena 2 and features original compositions by both Sofia Ribeiro and Gui Duvignau.
His second album Fissura springs from his years in Paris, where it was recorded with Jonathan Orland (alto saxophone & clarinet), Julien Pontvianne (tenor saxophone & clarinet), Federico Casagrande (guitar), Thomas Caillou (guitar) and Thibault Perriard (drums). It was released in April 2016 on the Parisian label Onze Heures Onzes and selected among the best of the year by the French magazine JazzNews.
Back in São Paulo, Brazil, he led his own groups and performed frequently with trio Improvisado (with Marcelo Castilha and Pedro Ito) and the Carlos Ezequiel trio – including performances with George Garzone and Leitieres Leite, and the recording of the trio’s album Circular with special guests David Binney and Lage Lund.
His travels led him to New York City, where he attended New York University and studied with Drew Gress, Billy Drummond, Billy Drewes, Brad Shepik, and Michael Wolff, among others. He received his master's of music degree in May 2020. He is also a student of jazz legend and master bassist, Ron Carter.
His book From the Bottom Up, featuring interviews with Ron Carter, Buster Williams, Ron McClure, Mike Richmond, Jay Anderson, Drew Gress, and Christian McBride was published by Ron Carter Books in September 2020, and in Brazil by Editora Tipografia Musical with the title De Baixo Para Cima in May 2023.
His third album of original compositions, 3,5,8, was released in January 2021 by Sunnyside Records and features Billy Drewes (saxophone), Jeff Hirshfield (drums), Santiago Leibson (piano), and Elias Meister (guitar).
His latest album Baden also on Sunnyside Records was released in January 2022 and features Billy Drewes (saxophones), Lawrence Fields (piano), Jeff Hirshfield (drums), and special guests Ron Carter on bass and Bill Frisell on guitar.
His upcoming album, Live in Red Hook, with pianist Jacob Sacks and drummer Nathan Ellman-bell will be released in January 2024.
Duvignau’s music and recordings have been featured on radios across the world, in playlists on Apple Music and Spotify, and in publications such as, The New York Times, JazzTimes, Jazziz, Jazz Magazine, Jazz News, All About Jazz, among others.